Gorsuch heads for confirmation as Senate tears up own rules
WASHINGTON — In a confrontation that could reshape the Supreme Court for generations, Republicans tore up the Senate’s voting rules Thursday to allow Trump nominee Neil Gorsuch to ascend to the high court over furious Democratic objections.
Democrats denounced the GOP’s use of what both sides dubbed the “nuclear option” to put Gorsuch on the court, calling it an epic power grab that would further corrode politics in Congress, the courts and the nation. Many Republicans bemoaned reaching that point, too, but they blamed Democrats for pushing them to it.
“We will sadly point to today as a turning point in the history of the Senate and the Supreme Court,” declared Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
“This is going to be a chapter, a monumental event in the history of the Senate, not for the better but for the worse,” warned Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a senior Republican.